16 January 2025
Chris Johnston
[FYI request #29412 email]
Ref: OIA-2024/25-0550
Dear Chris Johnston
Official Information Act request relating to inquiry regarding specifics of handover
process between Prime Minister's in regard to the Ministers office
Thank you for your Official Information Act 1982 (the Act) request received on 23 December
2024. You requested:
1) Can you please provide documentation that shows that successive Prime Minister's
Office (PMO) are regarded as separate legal entities for the purposes of the Official
Information Act and/or the Public Records Act under the following scenarios:
1a) A change in the party leader of the governing party (so the Prime Minister
changes);
1b) A change in the person holding the role of Prime Minister within a coalition
government to the leader of another party where the parties in the governing coalition
do not change;
1c) No change of Prime Minister but a new term as a result of an election where the
governing party retains power with the same leader
1d) A change in Prime Minister as a result of another party or Coalition winning the
election - the case in point for the OIA that forms the basis of this enquiry.
2) Can you please provide documentation that describes the requirements, policy and
process of archiving or retaining documentation/Records generated by the "previous"
Prime Minister's Office (PMO) in the following scenarios:
2a) A change in the party leader of the governing party (so the Prime Minister
changes);
2b) A change in the person holding the role of Prime Minister within a coalition
government to the leader of another party where the parties in the governing coalition
do not change;
2c) No change of Prime Minister but a new term as a result of an election where the
governing party retains power with the same leader
2d) A change in Prime Minister as a result of another party or Coalition winning the
election - the case in point for the OIA that forms the basis of this enquiry.
3) Can you confirm via documentation or otherwise that at some point the Records of
the following entities are eventually sent to the National Archives of New Zealand (and
if there is any moratorium set on the time that must pass until they can be accessed by
the public)?
3a) PMO
3b) Parliamentary Services
If you are unable to provide a document for any of the above I am open to you
answering the question directly.
4978668
Executive Wing, Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand 6011
64 4 817 9698 www.dpmc.govt.nz
In regard to parts 1(a) to 1(d) of your request, the Department of the Prime Minister and
Cabinet (DPMC) does not hold this information and does not believe that any relevant
documentation exists or is held by another agency. I am therefore refusing this part of your
request under section 18(e) of the Act as the requested information does not exist.
You may be interested in the Cabinet Manual which guides Cabinet’s procedures and is the
primary source of information for New Zealand’s constitutional arrangements:
Cabinet
Manual 2023
The following guidance from the Ombudsman also sets out how information from former
ministerial offices is treated:
Information not held - A guide to sections 18(e) and (g) of the
OIA and sections 17(e) and (g) of the LGOIMA.pdf
I believe the parts 2(a), 2(b) and 3(a) of your request for information about retaining records
from former ministerial offices are more closely connected to the functions of the Department
of Internal Affairs (DIA). Accordingly, I have decided to transfer this part of your request to
the DIA under section 14(b)(ii) of the Act. DPMC does not hold any information relevant to
this part of your request.
Regarding part 3(b), neither DPMC nor the current Prime Minister’s Office hold this
information. DIA do not hold the requested information either, however, they oversee
Archives New Zealand and the Public Records Act 2005. I therefore suggest seeking
appropriate guidance through the Archives Council who provide independent advice to the
Minister responsible for Archives New Zealand on recordkeeping and archives matters. You
can contact them here:
[email address]
Please note that the Parliamentary Service is not subject to the Official Information Act 1982.
If you are interested in their record-keeping, I recommend contacting them directly.
You have the right to ask the Ombudsman to investigate and review my decision under
section 28(3) of the Act.
We do not intend to publish this response on the Department of the Prime Minister and
Cabinet’s website.
Yours sincerely
Clare Ward
Executive Director
Strategy, Governance and Engagement
4978668
2
